Editorial | Barriers save lives

The extraordinary value of a simple concrete barrier on an interstate was vividly illustrated this week when a bus carrying 42 Louisville high school students veered out of control.

Tuesday's accident injured 30 kids and several adults but could have been much worse had the westbound bus, carrying passengers back to Louisville from a college visit, completed its path across the median and into oncoming traffic that included several tractor-trailer trucks.

"For a school bus to crash into another large vehicle, it would have been disastrous," a safety expert told The Courier-Journal's Mark Vanderhoff.

Any doubt is dispelled by a video of the crash that shows the bus, after a possible tire blowout, suddenly careen across I-64 toward the center before it slams into the concrete barrier between the east and westbound lanes.

Several safety experts told Mr. Vanderhoff the barrier likely prevented a tragedy, according to his Courier-Journal story Thursday. While many of the group from Waggener High School were injured and others shaken up, experts say the outcome would have been far worse had the bus crossed the median and crashed head-on into an oncoming car or truck.

Kentucky transportation officials say they are expanding the construction of such barriers as funds permit, particularly in heavily used portions of interstates that handle a high volume of trucks. About five years ago, the state began installing higher quality barriers that exceed federal requirements for height and force they can withstand.

And, fortunately for the Waggener High group, that was the type of barrier the bus hit Tuesday.

According to state officials, it is 56 inches high - taller than the 42 inches recommended by federal guidelines. That additional 14 inches may have prevented the bus from tipping over the barrier into oncoming traffic, a highway official said.

Other barriers, such as less expensive cables strung along the median, aren't as effective as evidenced by the tragic outcome in 2010 when a tractor trailer on Interstate 65 in Hart County crashed through a cable barrier and hit a van traveling in the opposite direction. Ten of the 12 people in the van died as did the truck driver.

State officials say they expect to install more concrete barriers as part of future road projects. It's a worthwhile investment in saving lives.

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Editorial | Barriers save lives

The extraordinary value of a simple concrete barrier on an interstate was vividly illustrated this week when a bus carrying 42 Louisville high school students veered out of control.